Thunder's predecessor, Thunder Dos, rides around a small indoor arena on Thursday with rider Ann Judge at Judge's Choice Training Center in Bennett. Thunder Dos will be coming out of retirement to be on call in case the Denver Broncos win the Super Bowl, and a horse is needed as the Broncos mascot for the parade. He served as the Broncos mascot for several years.Joshua Polson/jpolson@greeleytribune.com Buy Photo

Thunder gets up close and personal with owner, Sharon Magness Blake, as the two prepare for their trip to the super bowl at Judge's Choice Training Center Thursday afternoon in Bennett.The Greeley Tribune Buy Photo

Thunder Dos rests alongside the mirror in the small indoor arena on Thursday at Judge's Choice Training Center in Bennett. This was the first time Thunder Dos had been rode in more than a year.Joshua Polson/jpolson@greeleytribune.com Buy Photo

Ann Judge runs Judge’s Choice Training Center in Bennett, where she trained both Thunder Dos and Thunder Tres. For more info on her and on the Thunders, go to www.judgeschoicetraining.com.

Judge also runs a women’s horsemanship retreat called Cowgirls Up, where she teaches women to connect with their horses in wildlife. More information can be found on her website, at www.cowgirlsup.net or by contacting Judge at (303) 644-3144 or annjudgewegener@netecin.net.

Tell your story

The Denver Broncos will play Feb. 7 in the franchise’s eighth Super Bowl, and we’d like to hear what that means to you.

» Share your memories: Just about all of us have a favorite story about a past Super Bowl. Maybe you watched the big game with your dad when you were a kid. Or maybe, you even got the chance to go to a Super Bowl when the Broncos were playing. We’d like to hear your experience and why it has special meaning for you. Write about your favorite Super Bowl memory and send it to us. We’ll publish the submissions in The Tribune and online on Feb. 8. Stories and no longer than 300 words. Please include a photo of yourself, if possible.

» We’d also like to know if you, or someone you know, is a Broncos super fan. We’ll feature stories about some of Weld County’s biggest Broncos fans in the run-up to Super Bowl 50.

» Going to this year’s game? If you’re lucky enough to have tickets to this year’s Super Bowl, we’d like to include your story as part of our coverage.

Please email your Super Bowl memories or tips about fans or trips to the big game to citydesk@greeleytribune. Please include your name and a phone number where we can reach you.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story was updated to correct the date of the Super Bowl.

BENNETT — While the Denver Broncos prepared Thursday at Dove Valley for the Super Bowl, Thunder was training in this small eastern Colorado town.

He’s done this before. The horse used to be the acting Broncos mascot, but retired two years ago. Now, a new Thunder has taken his place — Thunder Tres. That’s right. Three different Thunders have stormed the Broncos field, but the first died several years ago. Thunder Tres will accompany the team to Super Bowl 50 in Santa Clara, Calif.

With more than a week to go before the game, Thunder Tres was nestled under a blue and orange blanket in his stall at Judge’s Choice Training Center. But his nearly identical counterpart — Thunder Dos — was saddled for the first time in more than a year, trotting circles around an arena.

When the home team goes to the Super Bowl, even retired mascots have a job to do.

If the Broncos win the game, the victory parade will take place the following Tuesday in Denver. Since the third Thunder always travels by horse trailer, and it moves slowly, he won’t make it back in time for the parade. Even though the second Thunder won’t be in California with the team, he’ll be waiting to welcome them home and trot proudly alongside the players in Denver.

Thunder Dos is 22 this year. Two years ago when the Broncos last went to the Super Bowl, his trainer and rider, Ann Judge, and owner, Sharon Magness Blake, decided it was time to let a new Thunder roll in. Thunder Dos had his last game at the AFC championship. He is the only one of the horses who hasn’t had the chance to gallop out of the tunnel onto the field for a Super Bowl. The first Thunder watched the Broncos win two Super Bowls in the 1990s, and Thunder Tres was in New York when the Broncos lost to the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII.

Judge teared up when she tried to explain how much it meant to her to have both the horses play a role in the Broncos’ big moment this year.

“I love them both,” she said. “It’s a little overwhelming.”

Judge has trained horses her whole life and worked with all three Thunders, though someone else initially trained the first. All three horses had vastly different personalities, she said, something that’s been fun for her to experience.

She also said it’s been incredible to train horses, a naturally timid and flighty animal, for a high-energy situation like a football stadium. She doesn’t look at it like trying to desensitize the animal, though. Sensitivity is one of the beautiful things about horses, and she wouldn’t want to take that away. It’s about the trust between the horse and rider.

“You want them to look to you for the appropriate response and for confidence and faith so that the flight response doesn’t get initiated,” she said.

All three Thunders have reacted to the stadium differently. The first needed to be facing the field when he was on the sideline. Judge said it was almost like he was watching the game. Thunder Dos wanted to watch the crowd — his eyes always darted to the rowdiest part of the stands. The newest Thunder doesn’t watch either. Instead, he faces sideways and snuggles his head into Judge or Magness Blake.

It’s been incredible to be part of the Broncos franchise, Magness Blake said. Broncos officials called her decades ago and asked if she had a white horse as part of her large Arabian breeding operation. She was thrilled. Now, even though the team is a large organization, she said it still feels like a family, and she’s proud to be the owner of the Broncos’ bronco.